Tiny (grape sized) eggs w/o yolks from my production red hen..Why??

[tomsgonefishin]

I can't figure out why my best layer of the bunch has basically stopped laying eggs for a few weeks now. I thought she might be egg bound so I tried keeping her inside, warm, with a warm bath but that didn't seem to help. Next I might have to try the vasiline...She does seem to have a distended abdomen and appears to be waddling a bit as she walks. Her legs seem further apart than usual.

Her comb looks great, she sits on the nest, but rarely produces an egg. The 4 or so eggs that we have gotten over the past 3 weeks were perfect little eggs about the size of a GRAPE!! Any ideas of what might be going on here? I cracked two of them open and they do not have any YOLK, just the egg whites.

My other 4 girls also look pretty good and healthy, but they are only laying every other day at best.
I do have some DE in their food, but I wonder if I need to try a better deworming agent?

Please help if you can think of anything. I was hoping the tiny eggs without yolks would be a key to some familiar diagnosis.

thank you
Tom

 

[speckledhen]

Just a glitch in the system. I get them from time to time. They are called "wind eggs", among other names. Nothing to worry about!

 

[Nichole77]

She farted.

 

[gumpsgirl]

Quote:
Just curious as to how this would have to do with anything?

Sorry, tomsgonefishin. I wish I, myself could give you some help here. I know you're worried about your hen. Listen to speckledhen! Cyn is one smart chicken and knows what she's talking about!

 

[Tuffoldhen]

They are called "wind eggs"...sometimes when they just need a rest from laying..these come out...could mean she is going into a molt too...

 

[Clucky]

I have 9 red hens and from time to time say...every 2 or so months about 2 of the 9 lay that tiny egg. my local vet said to me they are "dud" eggs. its perfectly normal. Dont worry. if it persists take her to the vet to get checked,
Clucky

 

[ChelC]

Sometimes they call them "fart eggs"

I don't think that means she passed gas though!

 

[tomsgonefishin]

Ok, so I can understand that these may be normal occurrances but she is not laying ANY normal eggs. This was my best laying hen, just about every day she laid an egg for 20-25 days straight, takes one day off, and back to work laying. Now she has laid zero eggs in the past 2 months or more, except for these 3 tiny eggs.
Does it make sense that she would molt in April (Spring)? She doesn't appear to be losing any feathers. She is almost 2 years old now.

 

[Wolf-Kim]

Tom, there was another post here earlier about how the Production Reds "burn-out" at about 2-3 years. Maybe your hen has just "burned out"? Here is the thread I was talking about.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=50100

When I read "about 2 years old" it made me think of that post.

Not to bring any bad news, hopefully it is just a molt, but the age and breed fits the topic of that thread.

-Kim

 

[tomsgonefishin]

Excellent point. I have a feeling her time is up and maybe she really is burned out. I tell you she was a laying machine sometimes going for 30 days non stop! Hmm, what to do with our poor old glory?? She is also the highest hen in the coop, practically since the day she arrived.
I think I will consider more of the heritage breeds next time. I did get a Delaware and an Australorp so hopefully they'll hang in there longer.
But I do think you are right on money here.

Thanks for the reply!
Tom